I grew up listening to Pete Seeger, Arlo Guthrie and Peter Paul & Mary. Their voices are a permanent part of my personal soundtrack. I’ve seen Arlo Guthrie and Peter Paul & Mary in person, but I never got the chance to see Pete Seeger in person and now I never will.

There are a lot of articles out there that will tell you all about how he was an activist, a singer, and all the wonderful things he did. You should probably go read them–he was incredible. I can’t tell you all that stuff, I just grew up thinking he sang some pretty cool songs. I was too young to really understand his songs and what they really meant. Now that I’m old enough, well, I think he sang some pretty cool songs that meant a lot to a lot of people, people who are going to miss him.

(Including this one because it has a cute story about Pete in it and frequent camera cuts to him laughing.)

You know how a song and a music video can get stuck in your head and you can’t get rid of it? Furthermore, you don’t want to get rid of it? Much love to Janelle Monáe for making such fabulous videos and music.

Someday Wicked will be in Kansas City at a time when I have enough money to buy a ticket. Until then, I’ll have to content myself with the Wicked soundtrack, the book, and the hope that someday, the status on this IMDB page updates to show that it’s in production.

I’ve been thinking about That Thing You Do lately, which means it’s time for a re-watch.

I fell down the Wiki rabbit hole and discovered that the person who wrote the title song was Fountains of Wayne bassist Adam Schlesinger. (Don’t know Fountains of Wayne? Go watch Stacy’s Mom and Hey Julie and then come back here.)

Schlesinger and Mike Viola are who you actually hear singing in the movie and you can see them sing it in the clip below.

Here’s a clip from the movie of The Wonders playing a big crowd after they’ve started to gain a following.

You guys look great in red, have I told you that?

When I was looking up the song, I discovered that there have been several covers. I know some people can’t stand covers (hi Mom!), but I love them.

Next up, let’s check out a boy band covering a fictional boy band’s song. Be sure to bask in the glory of the velvet pants worn by NSYNC.

I know that sometimes, you just need to go punk. Am I right? Sadly, there’s no footage of New Found Glory actually playing, so enjoy the cheesetastic picture that appears to be from some time around the late 90s.

Ever heard of Shakalabbits? Me either, but they’re a Japanese rock band who decided to make a video of their cover. I have to say, this was the cover I was most unsure about, but I actually like it quite a bit.

Last, but not least (we’re going to give the title of least to New Found Glory) is Bubblegum Lemonade, a Scottish Indie Pop group who has a slightly dreamy feel.

Truly, my playlist is a zany and mental sort of thing. I’ll see if there’s some way I can export it from Winamp into an html file so my musical choices can be properly mocked/appreciated. Instead of listing my playlist for today, I’m instead going to give you my earworm songs.

1. Tom’s Diner – Suzanne Vega

(Please note that Marisa Tomei runs around in a bra and panties for part of this clip from the opening of Untamed Heart)

2. Yellow Submarine – The Beatles

3. Jolly Holiday – Mary Poppins

There’s an excellent chance that I am walking around with one of these three songs stuck in my head. If I get something else stuck in my head, I’ve taken to singing one of these songs to myself to clear out the other song.